US President Donald Trump has announced his ambition to host a UFC fight on the White House lawn in 2026. Photo / Getty
US President Donald Trump has announced his ambition to host a UFC fight on the White House lawn in 2026. Photo / Getty
The White House lawn is usually where US President Donald Trump delivers brutal slapdowns of his political opponents before the world’s media.
Next year, the political battleground could be transformed into a ring, with the world’s top fighters facing off in an Ultimate Fighting Champion (UFC) bout to mark America’s250th birthday.
Trump announced the plans at a rally in Iowa on Friday, telling supporters the event would take place in front of up to 25,000 people.
“We’re going to have a UFC fight on the grounds of the White House. We have a lot of land there. Dana is going to do it,” Trump said.
The UFC is yet to officially confirm any details of the event but Dana White, who supported the President during his re-election campaign last November, shared the news on X alongside the caption: “This will be epic”.
McGregor, who met Trump at the White House on St Patrick’s Day, has not fought in the UFC since breaking his leg in 2021, but periodically teases his return to the sport.
Colby Covington, a former interim champion, is also a big Trump supporter and was frequently pictured wearing a Make America Great Again (MAGA) hat during the election.
Covington, who is from Florida, even blamed campaigning for Trump for his loss to Joaquin Buckley in December.
Sean Strickland, a former middleweight champion from Anaheim, California, is another vocal Trump supporter.
On Friday, Strickland posted on X in response to a trans swimmer being stripped of their medals following a directive from Trump: “It went from William Thomas to Lia Thomas back to William Thomas... America is finally healing. LFG Trump”.
Neither the White House nor the UFC have provided details on where exactly the fight would take place, but there are a few limited options.
One option is the Rose Garden, a smaller, more intimate outdoor space often used for presidential addresses or events. But the administration recently started work on paving over the grass in the Rose Garden, making it less likely.
More likely is a makeshift Octagon on the South Lawn, the largest open area on the White House grounds, covering 1,2ha. It’s often used for large events and state ceremonies, meaning it has the capacity to host large crowds.
The event's location is likely the South Lawn, with details yet to be confirmed by the UFC. Photo / Getty Images
At the centre of the UFC is White, who rescued the company from bankruptcy in the early 2000s and transformed it into a multibillion-dollar global enterprise.
At the time, Trump was one of the few figures who offered White a platform, allowing events to be hosted at the Trump Taj Mahal in Atlantic City when others refused.
The two have been friends and political allies ever since.
White spoke at the 2016 and 2020 Republican conventions, before appearing alongside Trump’s closest friends and family when he retook the White House in November.
Trump is regularly treated as a guest of honour at the UFC, where he walks out alongside White to the roar of thousands of fans.
Over the past decade, the UFC has evolved from a fringe combat league – once denounced by the late Republican Senator John McCain as “human cockfighting” – into one of America’s most influential cultural platforms.
Up to 25,000 people could attend the event on the South Lawn next year. Photo / Getty Images
It is a mixed-martial arts promotion in which a series of fights take place around the world, also known as fight nights. It calls itself the “premier organisation in Mixed Martial Arts (MMA)”.
The UFC is broadcast in more than 170 countries and reaches over 900 million households.
Perched behind Trump in the front row you will often see some of his closest political allies including RFK jnr, the Health Secretary; Kash Patel, the FBI director; and Elon Musk, who until recently was a key figure in the administration and close friend of the President.
Hollywood stars and musicians are also staples at UFC events, including Chris Pratt, Jared Leto, Matt Damon, along with French footballer Kylian Mbappe.
